'The World Has Won': New International Regulations To Protect Against Pandemics Finally Approved - Health Policy Watch

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After two years of intensive negotiations – including long nights this week – the World Health Assembly (WHA) finally passed amendments to the International Health Regulations (IHR) and committed to completing pandemic agreement talks within a year. After failing to agree on the amendments before WHA opened on Monday, member states have been racing to the finish in a drafting committee during this week in meetings that often went into the early hours. “Tonight we have all won and the world has won. You have made the world safer,” said a hoarse WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who lost his voice during the late-night sessions. The IHR is a legally binding international instrument aimed at preventing the international spread of disease, and requires countries to conduct surveillance for potential international health threats of all kinds and report those to WHO. The COVID-19 pandemic showed weaknesses in the IHR, including that it did not mention “pandemic”. Member st

WGIHR co-chairs Dr Ashley Bloomfield and Dr Abdullah Asiri and INB co-chair Precious Matsoso. After two years of intensive negotiations – including long nights this week – the World Health Assembly (WHA) finally passed amendments to the International Health Regulations (IHR) and committed to completing pandemic agreement talks within a year. After failing to agree on the amendments before WHA opened on Monday, member states have been racing to the finish in a drafting committee during this week in meetings that often went into the early hours. “Tonight we have all won and the world has won. Yo

'The World Has Won': New International Regulations To Protect Against Pandemics Finally Approved - Health Policy Watch

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